The Three Paradigms of Biblical Studies Essay

Other than considering the matter of genres, the differences of culture and language should also be part of the element we should think of when we discover the truth of the Bible. Different cultures will cause different understanding of the Bible. Placher uses the example of Thucydides that “keeping as closely as possible to the general sense of the words that were actually used” was “called for by each situation (Placher 12).” in this example, situation can be realized as someone’s own view imposed to the text, according to the culture or experience he goes through. Placher argues that if a biblical author writes in a attitude of culture which is different from the readers’ attitude, then he or she writes as the products of such a culture. Like what the author says, “to treat them as having an attitude to history different from what they do is not to interpret them with maximum accuracy, but to get them wrong (Placher 16). ” Moreover, the confusion of reading the Bible, which is originated in a culture different from ours, happens when there are different social conditions that give different meanings. The author gives an example of the slavery in ancient Israel and the slavery in the American South. He says that the slaves in ancient Israel are supposed to be free at the end of seven days, and their identity of slave is not based on race. However, the slavery in American, on the contrary, differs from the one in the Bible. In addition, the author talks about homosexuality. He claims that in ancient Israel, two men cannot love each other, for that is an abomination, and they will be condemned. However, in modern society, even if people do not follow the Bible, that is they love each other, they seldom be condemned. In brief, the author claims that understanding the genres, recognizing the attitudes toward the reporting of historical details, and considering the social context in

For many, the Hebrew bible is read and accepted without question. It plays a significant role in the practice of many religions and yet not many dare to wonder who wrote such sacred writings that would still be read to this very day. For generations, it was almost unheard of to ask or even fathom the identity of the author. Richard Elliot Friedman, a biblical scholar and graduate from Harvard University, explores, studies, and analyzes the bible to discover who wrote it. Having earned a master degree in theology, B.A degree in Philosophy, and master degree in Hebrew literature, Friedman proves to be a knowledgeable expert in his field of studies. From the years of work he invested into, Friedman aims to provide convincing evidence that the book is written by four persons through historical, archaeological, logical proof.

John H. Walton’s Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible is broken up into fourteen chapters. Those fourteen chapters are each part of one of five sections. This book also contains over twenty historical images. Before the introduction, the author gives readers a full appendix of all images used in this published work. The author then gives his acknowledgements followed by a list of abbreviations.

Chaim Potok’s novel, “In the Beginning” follows David Lurie’s scholarly journey as he begins to study biblical criticism despite the opposition he faces from his community and family, who consider biblical criticism an anti-Semitic practice of tearing apart the word of the Torah (Potok 1975, 372-374). Lurie’s examination of what critical biblical scholars have said about the Torah, gives a reflection, in narrative form, of how academic study of the Bible can be used to find appropriate meaning within it. In Lurie’s case, pursuing the study of biblical criticism was necessary for him to gain a deeper understanding about the origins of the bible, its text and what modern “scientific” perspectives argued about their application. In doing so, he understood that he would be able to better address the deeper questions and criticisms that targeted the teachings of Judaism, and which the orthodox viewpoint of his community chose not to explore because of their values regarding how to observe the bible. The point Potok makes with this novel applies even when thinking of the Bible outside the context of Judaism. That critical study of the Bible is necessary in order to look past the “cherished ideas” people hold about what the biblical text say so that we may see the layers and ideas we are not taught, to understand the authority of the Bible in cultural, historical and modern contexts and to reveal the contradictions within the Bible so that conclusions can be made on how we should

What is a worldview? On the word of Dr. Lew Weider & Dr. Ben Gutierrez (2013), "A worldview is the reflection of ones' heart; or internal existence, ones' mentality, feelings, and desires. The complete process that brings forth one's beliefs."

To truly comprehend a biblical passage, it is important to have knowledge of the ‘hermeneutics which enables an understanding of the locus of meaning and the principles of bible interpretation’ . The audience needs to have a clear interpretation of the biblical passage which includes ‘content and unity of the whole of Scripture if the meaning of the sacred texts is to be correctly worked out’ , this supports the argument that all worlds of the text are equally important. ‘Biblical passages are often taken out of context and interpreted to support a particular viewpoint of justify a particular action’ . It is imperative to note that ‘in order to discover the sacred authors' intention, the reader must take into account the conditions of their

Studying the Old Testament is not as straightforward as some may think. Being able to recall stories of the Bible does not necessarily mean you have a thorough grasp on the history of Israel and the surrounding nations. Some people read and discuss the Bible without a solid understanding of the history and social issues that were going on at the time. Being able to relate to the stories in the Bible and struggle with some of the same problems faced by the people in the Bible gives you a greater appreciation for the works in the Bible. I feel that having a firm understanding of all the related history of Israel gives a student of the Old Testament a far greater understanding of why these stories are in the Bible and what was meant to

The Bible has many passages that require interpretation for a deeper understanding of its meaning and purpose. For example, Ezekiel’s vision in chapters 40-48 is a difficult interpretative passage because of the eschatological and hermeneutical discrepancies in Ezekiel’s prophetic vision of a new temple. Ezekiel’s descriptive details of the new temple leads many scholars to sift through an exegetical interpretative methodology in order to, decipher whether

In the Catholic Church, there are four senses in which the bible can be viewed: literal, allegorical, moral and anagogical. The literal sense presents a historical account, and can be viewed by anyone as a historical document. The other three senses reflect the religious nature of the bible, showing believers a more profound meaning that can influence one’s spiritual lives. While each of the four senses of scripture can reveal different things to the reader, it is the four senses together that provide the complete view of this divinely inspired book.

Social Science Criticism is a method used to interpret texts which primarily looks at the context in which a text was written. This includes examining the author’s, narrative’s, and the reader’s social locations. Recognizing that all texts are socially habituated, the social sciences are applied to elucidate and decode the text at hand. Biblical scholars employ social science criticism as a means to understand boundaries, social interactions, authority, institutions, status, ritual, groups, society, gender, norms, customs, politics, and many other facets of society and culture within the biblical text. Through this method, scholars and their audience are able to obtain a view of what life was like during the writing of the biblical text, therefore enhancing one’s understanding of the social context and how that informs the text.

An example of how understanding the historical-cultural context can shed significant light on the meaning of a specific biblical text

I have been teaching doctoral seminars on the Hebrew Bible for ten years and have directed seven doctoral dissertations to completion. My model of a seminar is reading and critical study of the Masoretic text, supplemented with the ancient versions, as well as archaeological and textual sources from elsewhere in the Ancient Near East. We read an extensive amount of secondary scholarship and theory. Although there is much enthusiasm today for learning about biblical research by doing it, yielding to the temptation to abandon courses dealing with prescriptions and precedents leaves students vulnerable to chic ideas and passing persuasions. Exclusive focus in formative graduate study on the text, its establishment, criticism, and exegesis, leaves student prone to pseudo-theory and citations of “All Things Considered.” By extensive reading and critical analysis—with the deepest respect for previous achievement—of recognized writers and thinkers, ancient and contemporary, inside and outside the mainstream, we seek, in Matthew Arnold’s words, “the best that is known and thought” for the purpose of creating a “current of new and fresh ideas.” In writing their own papers, students grow

The authors set the groundwork in the first two chapters for the reader to have comprehension and understanding for the rest of the book. Therefore, the basis of the book is helping the reader to interpret and study the Bible. Fee and Stuart thoroughly discuss the process of interpretation. They stress the importance of correctly understanding what the reader is saying. Fee and Stuart stress that correct interpretation “brings relief to the mind as well as a prick or prod to the heart”

The meaning and authority of scripture can vary depending on who you are. You can focus on God as

In comparison to this, the section of the Hebrew Scriptures known as ‘prophecy’ is a far harder collection from which to discern common threads in the sense of genre or content. Set as a continuation of the greater biblical narrative, the Prophecy section is best understood when divided further into two parts, that of the former prophets and the later prophets . The former prophets consist of the books of Joshua, Judges, 1-2 Samuel and 1-2 kings and are generally referred to as ‘deutero-historical books’, expressing the role the theology of Deuteronomy plays in its